Policy Text
Injured Person Incident – When a person is injured prior to police contact and is subsequently
arrested, Baker Acted or otherwise taken into custody without any use of force; or, is injured as a
result of flight from police presence without any use of force; or is injured while in police custody
without any use of force.
Non-Deadly Force - Force that is not likely to cause death or great bodily harm.
Non-Deadly Weapons - Department approved weapons which, when used consistent with
training procedures, should not cause death or great bodily harm.
Objectively Reasonable - The determination that the necessity for using force and the level of
force used is based upon the officer’s evaluation of the situation in the light of the totality of the
circumstances known to the officer at the time the force is used and upon what a reasonably
prudent officer would use under the same or similar situations.
Excessive Force – When an officer uses more force than is objectively reasonable.
Probable Cause (Reasonable Belief) – A reasonable belief a person has committed a crime. It
is the standard that must be met for an arrest warrant to be issued, for an individual to be
searched, or for an individual to be taken into custody by the police.
Resistance - The subject’s attempt to evade an officer’s attempts to control them.
III. LEVELS OF CONTROL AND FORCE
A. Officer presence, identification of authority
B. Verbalization skills - commands of direction or arrest
C. Soft Control Techniques - techniques used to overcome resistance which offer a minimal
chance of injury to the officer and involved subject(s) but offer a high probability of
control. Examples include:
1. Escort position
2. Pressure points
3. Empty hand joint locks
4. Assisted empty hand arm locks using impact weapons
5. Handcuffing and/or supplemental restraints
A, B & C are not considered a use of force unless there is an injury or complaint of
injury to the involved subject.
D. Aerosol Subject Restraint ASR/OC and the Electronic Control Device (ECD) may be
used:
1. When soft control techniques in all likelihood will fail
Original issue: February 4, 1989, Use of Force/Injured Person Incident
Revised February 12, 2025, Policy III-13
2. When hard control techniques in all likelihood will lead to injury
E. Hard Control Techniques – Techniques used to overcome resistance which when used,
have a higher probability of injury to the officer and/or subject(s) involved and offer a
higher probability of control. Examples include:
1. Punches, strikes, and kicks
2. Impact weapon strikes
3. Non- Deadly force
4. Canines (K-9)
F. Deadly Force - Force likely to cause death or great bodily harm.
G. Use of Physical Force- The use of physical force will be restricted to circumstances
specified by law when it is necessary to accomplish a police objective. When a sworn
member is required to use physical force against another person or if there is a complaint
of injury, he or she will as soon as practical notify a supervisor. Following the incident, a
supervisory review will be conducted, and a written report will be submitted through the
chain of command to the Chief of Police or a designee. Rules & Regulations 8-5